Wine Imports to China will not surpass 40% of market share

Zhao Yu, deputy secretary of the China Association for Liquor & Spirits Circulation, predicts that wine imports will not easily reach a market share of 40%. Although domestic wine production has suffered four years of consecutive losses according to the National Bureau of Statistics, its still dominates sales with 70% of the home market. This is in the context where volumes of imported wines in China have nonetheless risen by 15%, reaching 638 million litres last year, including 481 million litres of bottled wine, an increase of 21.8%.

“Chinese wines still dominate” declared Zhao Yu, pointing to the improved image and quality of domestic wines in recent years. “Although production wise, there’s no increase in domestic wines, based on my research and study of the market, its market share has come to stabilise, hovering around 70%, » which he deemed a « satisfying performance. »

The trade official also noted the improvement in quality, marketing and sales for lesser known second-tier and third-tier brands. His conclusion is that taking into account China’s overall slowing economy, « a full recovery and strong growth for China’s wine market in the coming years is obviously too optimistic. »